One day a lonely girl found two weak birds while she was walking in the woods (树林). She took them home and put them in a small cage. She fed them with love and the birds grew strong. Every morning they greeted her with a beautiful song. The girl loved them very much and wanted their singing to last forever.

One day the girl left the cage's door open. The 1arger and stronger of the two birds flew out of the cage. The girl watched worriedly as it circled (盘旋) high above her. She was afraid that it would fly away and she would never see it again. So when it flew close, she grasped (抓) at it wildly. She was very happy that she held it tightly within her hand! Suddenly, she felt something had happened to the bird. She opened her hand and was surprised to find the bird was dead. Her love for the bird killed it.
She noticed the other bird jumping in the cage. She could feel that it wanted to be free. It hoped to fly into the clear, blue sky. She lifted (举起) it from the cage and flew it into the air. The bird circled once, twice, three times …
When the bird was flying happily in the sky, she was so glad. Just then the bird flew closer and sat softly on her shoulder. It sang the sweetest song she had ever heard.
The fastest way to lose love is to hold it tight. The best way to keep love is to let it fly!

C

    I stood there listening to my father shout at top of his voice. The look on his face said that one of us had done something wrong.

    “Which one of you did this?”

    We all looked down at the step. There was child's handwriting in chalk there. I was very frightened. I hope no one could see it. Would he guess it was me? I was so scared. When he asked me, I lied, “Not me, dad.” The other denied(否认) it as well. Of course, we all knew that one of us must have done it. But as the youngest and smallest of the three, I just couldn't find courage to tell the truth.

    To find out who had written on the step, Father gave us each a piece of paper and a pencil. “I want each of you to write exactly what you see on the step.” I tried my best to write the words differently. I didn't want dad to be able to tell it was me.

    He gathered up our paper and looked at them. “Since none of you will say yes, then I will punish you all.” I stood there and said nothing. The last thing I wanted was for Dad to punish me!

    “I did it.” My sister walked forward and said she had done something she hadn't. She was punished for a month.

   We didn't talk about that day for many years. Not until we were all older and I knew it was safe to finally tell my dad it was really me. I always felt sorry because of it. That was the last time I let anyone take the blame for me. I told myself, “One must see to what he or she has done.”

Do you know this girl?

    I went to the park with my older sister, Cathy, on Friday. My sister left her jacket on a bench (长椅) when we played games. When we went back to the bench, a little girl in a red T-shirt was sitting there. She looked like she was 8 or 9 and had long blonde hair. She had some money in her hand. When she saw us, she got up and walked away.

    I asked my sister, "Did you have any money in your jacket?"

    "Yes, Anna, I did."

    I said, "Have a quick look in your jacket."

    Cathy looked in her jacket, but her money was not there.

    "That girl stole (偷) it!" I said, and we ran after her. We caught (抓住) her soon.

    My sister was very angry and she said, "Give me the money!" The girl gave the money to Cathy and ran away. Then we went home. But before we could tell our parents, my mother said to Cathy, "You left your money at home. It's on the table in the kitchen." So the girl in the red T-shirt was not a thief (小偷)! Maybe she thought we were bad girls.

We felt      

    Please call us if you know this girl. We would like to say sorry to her and give the money back to her. Our number is 512667. Thank you very much.

                                                               Anna and Cathy

    Riley read so many stories about pirates (海盗) and treasure chests that he wanted to find a treasure chest of his own. One day, Riley went to the library and read a story about a man that buried expensive gold coins in his backyard in a chest. Riley was so interested in the story. "Mom, tell him that treasure chests are only in books and movies," said his old brother Ted. "It could really happen," said Riley. "Riley's right," said mom. "If you believe in something strong enough, it could happen."

    That night Riley's mom told Riley's dad how much Riley wanted to find a treasure chest. "I have an idea," said Riley's mom. "Saturday is Riley's birthday. Let's put his gift in a treasure chest and bury it in the yard for him to find." "That's a great idea!" said Riley's dad. They decided to put his new watch in the treasure chest. They would give him a map with clues (线索 ) to look for the treasure chest outside.

    After Riley left for school the next day, his mom wrapped the watch and went to the party store to buy a treasure chest. She came home and buried the treasure chest underneath the oak tree. She then drew a map with clues to where the treasure chest was buried. When Saturday came, mom and dad gave Riley his map, and told him that he would have to find his gift in the treasure chest using the clues on the map. Riley was so excited! He anxiously followed all the clues and found the treasure chest with his new watch. "Wow!" said Riley. "This is fantastic! I knew I would find a treasure chest someday!"

    "Happy Birthday!" they all shouted.

Dear Li Na,

    I'm really glad to receive your e-mail. You said you were learning to cook. Is it interesting? I think if you want to keep healthy, food is very important. You'll be better if you try all kinds of food, especially（特别是） vegetables and fruit. I eat them every day.

    You asked me how to make a milk shake. There are different kinds of milk shakes, such as apple milk shake, banana milk shake, carrot milk shake and watermelon milk shake. Apple milk shake is my favorite, because apples and milk are both good for our health. Before starting, we need an apple, a cup of milk, some ice-cream and two spoons of honey. Of course, you need a blender.

    Now, let's start. First, peel an apple and cut it up. Next, put the apple, the milk, some ice-cream and two spoons of honey into the blender. Then turn on the blender. Keep it going for only one minute. Finally, pour the apple milk shake into a glass and drink it. It's delicious!

    I want to learn how to make some Chinese food, such as dumplings, noodles and zongzi. Could you teach me?

    Write soon!

Yours,

Maria